Perimeter Markings

I retrieved my graphite stick from behind the eraser block. The corner of the desk was too open, exposed to any sudden movements. I took a blank yellow sticky note, pinned it down firmly with one clawed foot, and dragged the blunt graphite tip across it. Harsh, deliberate crosshatches took form, sketching a barricade pattern. A small housefly buzzed close, daring to breach my workspace, and I snapped my arm outward, swatting the air until it fled. With the paper thoroughly blackened with protective warnings, I wedged it upright against an open book spine to demarcate my territory.